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The life of Yvonne Cartier (1928-2014)
10 August 2014

“Then there was Yvonne Cartier as the hero; this remarkable artist has a quiet mastery of all Western forms of mime and her interpretation of the travesti role of Franz was a model of charm and historical insight, making the part come to life with a thousand subtle touches.”

Fernau Hall in the Daily Telegraph, May 26th 1970

“You shall always be with me as you were – bubbling with life, elegant in thought and deed, and above all, giving from a kind and generous heart. Every day, as I place my hand on the barre I shall think of you; your teaching will live on through us - I see it now as our duty. What a joy to have known you, to have learnt so much thanks to your boundless devotion to art! For even after so lengthy a career, you could still be surprised and delighted!

"There are encounters that change one’s life. For all you have given us, I can only say Thank You Yvonne.”

Emma Brest, Cannes Jeune Ballet, May 13th 2014

Aged under 6

At three decades’ interval, the words above – penned respectively by great experience and by youth – sum up the whirlwind that was Yvonne Cartier, who died on May 11th in Paris.

A maverick who invariably headed straight off the beaten path, Yvonne Cartier was a former Royal Ballet soloist who became a specialist in mime technique, and as a teacher of classical dance, an unsung hero.

Of French and Irish extraction, Yvonne was born in 1928 near Auckland, and began her theatrical career at the age of four.

Immediately after World War II, thanks to her work under Bettina Edwards, herself a pupil of Margaret Craske, Yvonne won an RAD Overseas Scholarship to the Sadler’s Wells Ballet School. After graduating, she joined the hit revue Sauce Tartare alongside Audrey Hepburn (Yvonne was an exceptionally beautiful redhead), while studying with Vera Volkova and Audrey de Vos.

In 1949, she joined Alan Carter’s Saint James Ballet Company, and in 1950, was soloist with the B.B.C. TV Resident Ballet Company, dancing, inter alia, Swanilda to David Blair’s Franz. After touring with the Covent Garden Opera Company, she met up with John Cranko’s troupe at the Henley-on-Thames Festival to save the Kenton Theatre. Just as she was becoming disillusioned with all the “mushroom companies” offering no stable work (touring conditions at the time were often appalling, and she recalled having slept in rooms where no windows would close, and the sheets were coated in ice) in 1952 Sadler’s Wells Theatre Ballet recruited her as soloist. There, in the demi-caractère rôles at which she excelled (including the lead in Pineapple Poll), she caught Ninette de Valois’ eye and in 1955 joined the main company, Sadler’s Wells Ballet, as soloist.

Unfortunately, bone spurs, incurable at the time, caused her pain to a degree that in 1957, Yvonne resigned from the then-Royal Ballet and left to study at Jacques Lecoq’s mime school in Paris with a letter of recommendation from Margot Fonteyn. Proud to a fault, only years later did she tell de Valois the truth about why she had left.

Shortly thereafter, Yvonne was invited back to London to dance Carabosse in the cast led by Fonteyn and Somes for the BBC’s 1959 film of The Sleeping Beauty.

She then returned to France and joined Lecoq’s troupe; they toured Europe and did television shows in the UK and Italy, as well as the BBC documentary Hands as a Means of Communication (1961).

In 1963 she was recruited by the great mime Marcel Marceau, with whom she again toured widely. Later in the decade, she worked at the Théâtre National Populaire as assistant director to Michel Cacoyannis and George Wilson. She also taught mime for many years at the Ecole Charles Dullin, and in the 1970s, choreographed for stage plays directed by Claude Confortès.

Yvonne’s final appearance on stage was as Franz to Noëlle Christian’s Swanilda, for the Royal Ballet Organisation’s Ballet for All. To mark the centenary of Coppelia, Paulette Dynalix and Lucien Duthoit of the Paris Opera reconstructed Saint-Léon’s version, which tourned the UK, attracting much favourable comment.

In 1961, she returned to teaching classical dance, and in 1969 introduced the RAD system to France, being made an RAD life member in 1995 in appreciation of her work. As the remarkable quality of Yvonne’s teaching became bruited about, she was invited to join the staff of the Conservatoires of the City of Paris. Three of her students - Muriel Valtat, Betina Marcolin and (following Yvonne’s stint leading the Dance Department at the Saskatchewan School of Performing Arts), Tonia Stefiuk-Olson - were awarded the RAD Solo Seal and went on to distinguished careers: recipient of the first Phyllis Bedells Bursary, twice awarded Bronze in the Adeline Genée competition, Muriel became first soloist with the Royal Ballet (1992-2003). Bétina, formerly soloist with The Royal Swedish Ballet, is now a noted choreographer and teacher in Stockholm. Awarded the Solo Seal, then finalist at the Adeline Genée Competition in 1991, Tonia was for over a decade soloist with Salt Lake City Ballet.

In the 1980s, many “old school” teachers quit the profession, demoralised by the craze for hyper-extensions and “Legs-Up Dance” as Leo Kersley put it. Others simply went along with the trend and tried to “make it work”. Yvonne, however, insisted on teaching what she had learnt from the great masters. Anatomically-correct placement eschewing all exaggeration, arms firmly supported through the back and ideally formed at all times no matter the speed or momentum, lightning-swift batterie learnt from Errol Addison, and the stripping-away of all tics and mannerisms.

Yvonne loved the theatre, the science of acting, the comedy and the tragedy of it, and was pitiless with “standardised” emotion” and wan “ballet faces”. Each gesture, even in class, must be driven by an appropriate emotional response to the music. Every moment, even in class, must be alive, animated, and led by the spirit.

In 2007, Yvonne Cartier joined the Société Auguste Vestris as a founding member, and led many of its rehearsals. Coaching young professionals until a few months before her death, she kept her caustic sense of humour and headstrong enthusiasm to the very last.

Yvonne was in herself a whole institution. She not only taught dance, she formed her pupils to the spirit of Dance and The Arts in general.
Talking and above all listening to Yvonne could take hours and being her student feels more like being her"disciple". She had a very wide range of knowledge and kept herself updated, there were very few subjects that she hadn´t anything to say about. She shared it and time just flew.
No dancing movement or gesture was unimportant to her and one had always to find an intention, everything mattered. And if you didn´t have anything to say while dancing, why do it?
There are so many good moments to remember with her, and also her phenomenal stubbornness, as one says in French: Elle était têtue! and we have probably all shaken our heads with saying "Tu connais Yvonne", when none of our understanding could explain her choices. Yvonne had a very strong artistic integrity.
Yvonne always amazed me how she could remember steps and not only from classical ballet. Some years ago we were talking about folk dance among other things, and about Serbia. She then just stood up and did a whole Serbian folkdance without music. She was a bit upset because she had forgotten one or two steps from that dance she learned more than 50 years ago...
Sailing through the sea of Art is not always easy and she might have been missunderstood sometimes, but we will probably catch up one day and understand.
Working with her and being with her has undoubtly made a great impact, probably even bigger than one can imagine. The rings in water have just started to spread and one can say across the world. I am sure she will continue to support us from where she is and follow our steps.
With a deep bow, thank you from the bottom of my heart and of all the people that came across you.

Tonia Stefiuk-Olson, Former soloist, Salt Lake City Ballet

I was a student of Madame Cartier’s for the short time that she spent in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan with the School of Performing Arts. It was because of her that I found the courage to leave Saskatoon and move to Vancouver to join the Goh Ballet Academy. I completed my RAD Solo Seal and was a finalist at the Adeline Genee Competition in 1991. Upon graduation, I joined the Ottawa Ballet under the directorship of Frank Augustyn as soloist (1991-1994), and then spent 10 years as a soloist with Salt Lake City Ballet (1994-2004).
In 2004, I retired from dance and returned to Saskatoon where I am now working as a nurse. I have led a wonderful life and I thank heaven to have been blessed to have spent time with Madame Cartier.

Curriculium Vitae

Early studies in dance, music and theatre in New Zealand with : Valerie Valeska, Dilyse Askin, Bettina Edwards (a pupil of Margaret Craske’s)

Theatre : Maisie Carte-Lloyd, Helen Griffiths

July 1946: Repertory Ballet Theatre of New Zealand, Auckland - dances excerpts from Ashton’s Façade with Jill Beachen, after Laurel Martyn’s Borovansky version

Yvonne Cartier was awarded the 3rd New Zealand Royal Academy of Dancing Overseas Scholarship for 1946, in March 1947. In February 1948, she reached England on the New Zealand Shipping Co’s Ruahine, to study at the Sadler’s Wells Ballet School (now the RBS)

Ruahine, 1951-1968

Studies in Europe

1948

The Sadler’s Wells Ballet School

Winifred Edwards (born in 1895, had belonged to Anna Pavlova’s company)

Ailne Phillips (1905-1992, a pupil of Lydia Kyasht)

Claude Newman

Georges Goncharov

As a professional dancing in London, she continued to study with : Vera Volkova, Audrey de Vos, Georges Goncharov, Errol Addison (a pupil of Cecchetti)

Career

1949

Soloist with the Saint James Ballet Company, founded by Alan Carter (Arts Council of Great Britain subsidy).

Opens mime and modern dance courses at the Maison des Jeunes et de la culture

1969

Introduces the Royal Academy of Dance’s examination system at the Maison des Jeunes et de la culture at Asnières

1970

Puts an end to her stage career to devote herself entirely to teaching and choreography
Teaches at Paris Centre

1982-1986

Guest teacher, England, Spain, Canada and New Zealand

1984

Teaches at the Conservatoire Marius Petipa, Paris and the Conservatoires de la Ville de Paris. Her pupils Muriel Valtat and Bétina Marcolin are awarded the RAD’s Solo Seal Award on the same day; the jury is chaired by Margot Fonteyn.

1986

Head of the Dance Department, Saskatchewan School of Performing Arts, Canada. Yvonne Cartier teaches and advises Tonia Stefiuk-Olson, later a soloist with Salt Lake City Ballet (Utah)

1987

International course at Wellington, New Zealand. Guest teacher, New Zealand School of Dance

1987-1991

Teaches for the Conservatoires de la Ville de Paris in the 9th, 13th and 17th arrondissements and at the Conservatoire Marius Petipa

1992

Bétina Marcolin is appointed soloist of the Royal Swedish Ballet

1993

Muriel Valtat is appointed at the Royal Ballet, Covent Garden

1995

Is appointed Life Member of the Royal Academy of Dance for her pioneering work to introduce the system into France

2007

Joins the Société Auguste Vestris (non-profit, public interest Society - Association 1901 reconnue d’intérêt général) as a member of its Scientific Committee

2009-2013

Leads rehearsals for the Nuits Blanches de Saint-Petersbourg, the Nuits Blanches du Risorgimento and the Grandes Leçons of the Société Auguste Vestris at the Centre de danse du Marais. Teaches students from French vocational schools extracts from the Conservatoire by August Bournonville prior to the arrival in France of the Royal Theatre’s Flemming Ryberg.

2011

June : Gives a Master Class for the Conservatoire du 19ème arrondissement of Paris

November : Le Style – terrain de jeu de l’imaginaire. With Ethéry Pagava (who taught the section on Liubov Egorova), gives a Grande Leçon for the Société Auguste Vestris and the Centre de danse du Marais : students of the Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Paris dance the Grand adage by Tamar Karsavina.

2007-2013

Gives Class of Perfection lessons to Pier-Paolo Gobbo (ex-Ballet de l’Opéra de Bordeaux and Maggio Musicale Fiorentino), Emma Brest (Cannes Jeune Ballet), Chikako Nishikawa of the Inoue Ballet Foundation, and students of Marie-Josée Redont of the Paris Opera School.

Teaches in Bétina Marcolin’s studio at Stockholm, at Lucca and Viareggio at the invitation of Giulia Meniccuci, at Poissy at the invitation of Cécile Daeniker of Danse en Ile de France, at Bologna at the invitation of Pier-Paolo Gobbo and at Ravenna in Mariarosa Bruna’s Scuola di danza Città di Ravenna

Publications

Ballet for Beginners by Felicity Andreae Gray. Phoenix House Limited, London 1952. Model for photographs.